Since the Third week of Easter, the Gospel readings at the Catholic Mass have come from the sixth book of John. My book, Discovering Jesus in the Holy Eucharist ©, just happens to focus on that same section of the Bible. In it, Jesus explains what will become known as the Holy Eucharist — His Body and Blood — that will save us. Here is a section of my book. The book is copyrighted, but I share it with you here. You may find the Mass readings at: Daily Bible Reading – May 10, 2025 | USCCB
Scripture: The Bread of Life Discourse
“Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die” (John 6:47-50).
Reflection:
Here again, he says whoever believes has eternal life. It is the belief that Jesus is the bread of life that gives eternal life. He is stating that he is more important than the manna, which only sustained physical life. He is the true bread that came down from heaven. Those who eat it will not die but will live forever.
Prayer:
We all want more; we want to have eternal life! Jesus, help me to step out in faith and believe that you are the real bread from heaven, not just a symbol.
Journaling Prompt:
What is Jesus saying to me here, and what do I want to say to him?
Scripture: The Bread of Life Discourse
“I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world” (John 6:51).
Reflection:
Jesus once again says that he came down from heaven—and then, another time, that he is the living bread that came down from heaven. But now he adds something new—that this bread is actually his flesh for the life of the world! With each new sentence, Jesus reveals more—like the Russian nesting dolls that open to another doll and then another, but with Jesus each revelation is different and mind-boggling!
Prayer:
Jesus, you revealed yourself bit by bit. Thank you for having patience with humanity—and especially with me.
Journaling Prompt:
What is Jesus saying to me here, and what do I want to say to him?
Scripture: The Bread of Life Discourse
“The Jews quarreled among themselves, saying, ‘How can this man give us [his] flesh to eat?’” (John 6:52).
Reflection:
To eat the flesh of Jesus made no sense to the Jews; it makes no sense to a lot of Christians. It carries echoes of cannibalism, and surely Jesus was not instituting that type of barbarism. However, he wasn’t speaking in metaphors. Jesus said he was the Bread of Life, and now he is demanding more. This is not symbolism; this is specific—his flesh.
Prayer:
Jesus, help me to keep an open mind and study your teachings rather than disregard them. Prepare me to defend what you imparted to the Church.
Journaling Prompt:
What is Jesus saying to me here, and what do I want to say to him?
Scripture: The Bread of Life Discourse
“Jesus said to them, ‘Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you’” (John 6:53).
Reflection:
Jesus is not only saying that those who eat the Bread of Life, which is his flesh, will have eternal life; he says that if they do not eat his flesh or drink his blood, they will not have life. This sounded mad to the Jews. They were forbidden to drink blood “since the life of all flesh is its blood,” that is, its lifeblood (Lev. 17:14, cf. Gen. 9:4). Because God is the source of life, only God could change this regulation. Jesus is instituting a new commandment to drink his blood, inviting humanity to be one with him, to have his lifeblood pulsating within them.
Prayer:
Jesus, you are the source of life! Open my heart and mind to accept your lifeblood through the Eucharist so that the spirit of your blood may beat within my heart.
Journaling Prompt:
What is Jesus saying to me here, and what do I want to say to him?
Scripture: The Bread of Life Discourse
“For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink” (John 6:55).
Reflection:
If the Jews believed that one’s life resides in one’s blood, we should see that these aren’t just symbolic words. By consuming Jesus’ Body and Blood, we receive his lifeblood, his life. Therefore, the Catechism of the Catholic Church quotes Eucharisticum Mysterium 6: “The Eucharist is the efficacious sign and sublime cause of that communion in the divine life and that unity of the People of God by which the Church is kept in being” (CCC 1325).
Prayer:
Thank you, Jesus, for causing the unity of the People of God through the reception of your Body and Blood. This creates true Holy Communion with my family, friends, and even strangers.
Journaling Prompt:
What is Jesus saying to me here, and what do I want to say to him?
Scripture: The Bread of Life Discourse
“‘This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever.’ These things he said while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum” (John 6:58-59).
Reflection:
We eat this bread, the Eucharist, but by the time we’re eighty or one hundred years old, we will die. Does this mean Jesus lied or that we misunderstood what he was saying? Of course not! As we’ve seen before and will see again, Jesus is speaking not of physical life but of spiritual life—eternal life for our souls and resurrected bodies.
Prayer:
Jesus, we love our physical life because we experience it now. Help me to put more value on my future eternal life since it is a gift that will last forever in your beautiful presence.
Journaling Prompt:
What is Jesus saying to me here, and what do I want to say to him?
